- Latest available (Revised)
- Original (As enacted)
Finance Act 2003, Section 18 is up to date with all changes known to be in force on or before 16 August 2024. There are changes that may be brought into force at a future date. Changes that have been made appear in the content and are referenced with annotations.
Revised legislation carried on this site may not be fully up to date. Changes and effects are recorded by our editorial team in lists which can be found in the ‘Changes to Legislation’ area. Where those effects have yet to be applied to the text of the legislation by the editorial team they are also listed alongside the legislation in the affected provisions. Use the ‘more’ link to open the changes and effects relevant to the provision you are viewing.
Whole provisions yet to be inserted into this Act (including any effects on those provisions):
(1)In Part 4 of the Value Added Tax Act 1994 (c. 23) (administration, collection and enforcement), after section 77 insert—
(1)This section applies to goods of any of the following descriptions—
(a)telephones and any other equipment, including parts and accessories, made or adapted for use in connection with telephones or telecommunication;
(b)computers and any other equipment, including parts, accessories and software, made or adapted for use in connection with computers or computer systems.
(2)Where—
(a)a taxable supply of goods to which this section applies has been made to a taxable person, and
(b)at the time of the supply the person knew or had reasonable grounds to suspect that some or all of the VAT payable in respect of that supply, or on any previous or subsequent supply of those goods, would go unpaid,
the Commissioners may serve on him a notice specifying the amount of the VAT so payable that is unpaid, and stating the effect of the notice.
(3)The effect of a notice under this section is that—
(a)the person served with the notice, and
(b)the person liable, apart from this section, for the amount specified in the notice,
are jointly and severally liable to the Commissioners for that amount.
(4)For the purposes of subsection (2) above the amount of VAT that is payable in respect of a supply is the lesser of—
(a)the amount chargeable on the supply, and
(b)the amount shown as due on the supplier’s return for the prescribed accounting period in question (if he has made one) together with any amount assessed as due from him for that period (subject to any appeal by him).
(5)The reference in subsection (4)(b) above to assessing an amount as due from a person includes a reference to the case where, because it is impracticable to do so, the amount is not notified to him.
(6)For the purposes of subsection (2) above, a person shall be presumed to have reasonable grounds for suspecting matters to be as mentioned in paragraph (b) of that subsection if the price payable by him for the goods in question—
(a)was less than the lowest price that might reasonably be expected to be payable for them on the open market, or
(b)was less than the price payable on any previous supply of those goods.
(7)The presumption provided for by subsection (6) above is rebuttable on proof that the low price payable for the goods was due to circumstances unconnected with failure to pay VAT.
(8)Subsection (6) above is without prejudice to any other way of establishing reasonable grounds for suspicion.
(9)The Treasury may by order amend subsection (1) above; and any such order may make such incidental, supplemental, consequential or transitional provision as the Treasury think fit.
(10)For the purposes of this section—
(a)“goods” includes services;
(b)an amount of VAT counts as unpaid only to the extent that it exceeds the amount of any refund due.”.
(2)In section 83 of that Act (appeals) after paragraph (r) insert—
“(ra)any liability arising by virtue of section 77A;”.
(3)In section 84(3) of that Act (appeals not to be entertained unless the VAT has been paid or deposited, except where that would cause hardship) for “or (q)” substitute “ , (q) or (ra) ”.
(4)This section shall be deemed to have come into force on 10th April 2003 except subsection (3) which applies in relation to any appeal notice of which is given on or after the day on which this Act is passed.
Commencement Information
I1S. 18 wholly in force at Royal Assent; s. 18(1)(2)(4) in force retrospective to 10.4.2003 and s. 18(3) in force at Royal Assent see s. 18(4)
The Whole Act you have selected contains over 200 provisions and might take some time to download. You may also experience some issues with your browser, such as an alert box that a script is taking a long time to run.
Would you like to continue?
The Whole Act you have selected contains over 200 provisions and might take some time to download.
Would you like to continue?
The Whole Act without Schedules you have selected contains over 200 provisions and might take some time to download. You may also experience some issues with your browser, such as an alert box that a script is taking a long time to run.
Would you like to continue?
The Whole Act without Schedules you have selected contains over 200 provisions and might take some time to download.
Would you like to continue?
The Whole Act you have selected contains over 200 provisions and might take some time to download. You may also experience some issues with your browser, such as an alert box that a script is taking a long time to run.
Would you like to continue?
The Whole Act without Schedules you have selected contains over 200 provisions and might take some time to download. You may also experience some issues with your browser, such as an alert box that a script is taking a long time to run.
Would you like to continue?
The Schedules you have selected contains over 200 provisions and might take some time to download. You may also experience some issues with your browser, such as an alert box that a script is taking a long time to run.
Would you like to continue?
Latest Available (revised):The latest available updated version of the legislation incorporating changes made by subsequent legislation and applied by our editorial team. Changes we have not yet applied to the text, can be found in the ‘Changes to Legislation’ area.
Original (As Enacted or Made): The original version of the legislation as it stood when it was enacted or made. No changes have been applied to the text.
Geographical Extent: Indicates the geographical area that this provision applies to. For further information see ‘Frequently Asked Questions’.
Show Timeline of Changes: See how this legislation has or could change over time. Turning this feature on will show extra navigation options to go to these specific points in time. Return to the latest available version by using the controls above in the What Version box.
Access essential accompanying documents and information for this legislation item from this tab. Dependent on the legislation item being viewed this may include:
This timeline shows the different points in time where a change occurred. The dates will coincide with the earliest date on which the change (e.g an insertion, a repeal or a substitution) that was applied came into force. The first date in the timeline will usually be the earliest date when the provision came into force. In some cases the first date is 01/02/1991 (or for Northern Ireland legislation 01/01/2006). This date is our basedate. No versions before this date are available. For further information see the Editorial Practice Guide and Glossary under Help.
Use this menu to access essential accompanying documents and information for this legislation item. Dependent on the legislation item being viewed this may include:
Click 'View More' or select 'More Resources' tab for additional information including: